Positive Psychology Training

I want to have a positive psychology and I want to teach it in my domestic violence groups, and I want my children to grow up with a positive psychology.

It looks like if I want the educational variety of the training, I should go to the MAPP institute at the University of Pennsylvania, where Martin Seligman hangs out.

And it looks like there are a number of institutes where I can sign up for positive psychology training, and some coaches who advertise positive psychology training, and there are a lot of books apparently about positive psychology training, so I guess I am going to have to spend some time sorting through all that to get a feel for positive psychology training.

But what is Positive Psychology?

"Positive psychology is a branch of psychology that focuses on improving the mental functioning of human beings above that of normal mental health. Researchers in this rapidly growing field investigate what makes human beings happy and how an individual can lead a fulfilling and satisfying life. As a field of inquiry, its purpose is to understand and foster the factors that allow individuals, communities, and societies to flourish (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000), adapting what is best in the scientific method to the unique problems that human behavior presents."

Your First Lesson in Positive Psychology Training

Practice positive self-talk. Start by following one simple rule: Don't say anything to yourself that you wouldn't say to anyone else. Be gentle and encouraging with yourself. If a negative thought enters your mind, evaluate it rationally and respond with affirmations of what is good about yourself.

Now what? Remember, you have 60,000 thoughts per day, so rinse and repeat frequently.